The Next Phase of the Internet Enter the

By Lloyd Bravo

It seems almost impossible at this point to think about a world that did not have the internet. Especially now that the convenience and ease to search for information in the vast endless void of cyberspace has been a fixture of our culture for nearly 30 years, and continues to shape our society in so many ways, for better and worse.

But it has only been since the mid-1990s that digital communications was seen as a viable possibility, when dial-up modems first started filling our homes with the static sounds of connecting to the public internet.

Now the power of the internet is virtually in the hands of anyone with a smartphone, as the once clunky at-home service has become the main purveyor of how individuals are able to communi- cate and gain access to almost any type of service, including food, transportation and entertainment. Yet, the idea of another phase of the internet probably seems as far-fetched now as the dial-up days of the ‘90s did back then, but a new version to our already well-established cyberspace has indeed started entering our public consciousness with a new vision known as the metaverse.

What exactly is the metaverse? The term has been used to describe an all-encompassing digital world that people can virtually immerse themselves into for work, travel, entertainment and commerce. However, this virtual reality has yet to be fully realized, as the prototypes are still in the early concept stages. Yet, this developing technology has been given extreme gravitas rcently with the introduction of Facebook’s new name “Meta,” along with Mark

Zuckerberg’s ambitious vision of the future of the internet, what he calls the metaverse. Zuckerberg explains that the metaverse will be a utopia where individuals can enjoy an enhanced version of their online experience in a virtual reality environment and a place where companies can make money off those environments. According to a report from CNBC International’s Sam Shead entitled “What is the metaverse, and why are billions of dollars being spent on it?,” the potential revenue that can be accumulated from the metaverse is estimated to be between $8-13 trillion by 2030.

It is hoped that the metaverse will provide individual users a more immersive experience by wearing a VR headset to enter virtual reality spaces, where they will be represented by avatars to navigate these virtual environments. The goal is to merge the physical and digital worlds in a virtual setting that allows users more interactive involvement with the internet.

However, there remain questions about the public’s appetite to explore this new digital frontier. Matthew Dickey, a student at Long Beach City College, so far remains indifferent to the concept of the metaverse.

“It’s so early that I cannot see myself begin excited for something that is in its development stages,” Dickey said. “I think once there is more technology that caters to the concept of the metaverse, I will be more willing to appreciate the effort going into the product.”

Anticipating this possible shift in public attitudes toward virtual reality, tech companies have already invested in the early integration of hardware and software to utilize the upcoming technologies to be the first host to the metaverse. Facebook’s purchase of the visual reality firm Oculus in 2014 was a step in this direction, as it has since developed the Quest 2, a VR hub meant to become the first iteration of their version of the metaverse. However, with its large headset for viewing and wireless controls to simulate motion, Quest 2 has been seen more as a gaming system than a new wave of the internet since the technology used to incorporate the metaverse is still fuzzy at best.

Other corporations like Qualcomm, Valve, Epic Games and Apple are also currently working on their interpretations of the metaverse to lay the the foundation for their own virtual platforms. Although the notion of interoperability between operating systems is crucial for the metaverse to thrive, this may require the cooperation of major companies to sync together in order for people to move freely between these newly formed platforms. A feat easier said than done.

As the vision of the future is always unclear, the idea that the metaverse will reach the standards of science-fiction film “Ready Player One,” where virtual reality is where people work, shop and play together in one large universe, is still a fantasy.

Eric Ravenscraft of Wired explains in his article, “What is the Metaverse, exactly?,” that, “there’s no guarantee people will even want to hang out sans legs in a virtual office or play poker with DreamWorks Mark Zuckerberg, much less that VR and AR tech will ever become seamless enough to be as common as smartphones and computers are today.”

Even so, Nicolas Lotts, a student at California State University, Long Beach, is optimistic about the theory of the metaverse.

“I think this could be a game changer for people who want to utilize a new form of the internet and become early adopters to an immersive virtual world,” Lotts said. However, the aspiring teacher admits he is confused about the metaverse. “I honestly just like the idea, but I still do not fully comprehend the overall concept.”

One of the biggest concerns when it comes to the next phase of the internet is safety precautions that will be used to prevent scamming and security measures to protect children who enter the metaverse, particularly as rampant abuse, bullying, and the spreading of misinformation might be intensified due to its more immersive environment.

While it is not clear what exactly the metaverse is at the moment, the hope is that it becomes a user-friendly experience that people can shape as their own and use to further incorporate their digital and real lives in a comfortable and enjoyable way. Whether this concept of the metaverse is the one society fully utilizes, or it transforms into a version we may not have yet envisioned, the future of the internet seems virtually guaranteed to continue reshaping what we think is possible.